A blog bringing latest updates about Pakistan and it's Armed Forces

Tag Archives: Peshawar

Miran Shah: Taliban militants killed 14 soldiers in Miranshah, beheaded all but one of them and hung two of the heads from wooden poles in the centre of town, officials said Monday.The killings in Miranshah, the main town in the North Waziristan tribal area, highlight the situation facing the military in dealing with the militancy.

The US has repeatedly demanded that Pakistan launch an offensive in North Waziristan, especially against the so-called Haqqani network. Pakistan has promised to do so in the future. “Something has to be done, and it’s in the offing,” Lt-Gen Khalid Rabbani, the Pakistan army’s top commander in the region told an American news agency in an interview Monday, reported Washington Post. “North Waziristan is the only place left” that hasn’t been the target of an operation, he said.

On Sunday, the Taliban ambushed a security checkpoint in Miranshah, killing nine soldiers, the army said. Militants had been firing on the checkpoint for the past few days before they ambushed it, the army added.When authorities finally retrieved the bodies of the dead soldiers, they found that they had been beheaded, said intelligence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to the media.

The Army retaliated Sunday with helicopter gunships that pounded suspected militant hideouts and also hit three houses and a mosque in the town, said intelligence officials. Three civilians were killed and 20 were wounded in the helicopter attacks, they said. It’s unclear how many militants were killed.The military also raided a house in Miranshah on Sunday night, killing a militant commander and several of his colleagues, said intelligence officials. But the remaining militants escaped with five soldiers captured during the raid.They beheaded four of them and hung two of their heads from poles in Miranshah on Monday. The bodies of the others were dumped in Miranshah bazaar, the officials said.“This will not shy us off establishing the writ of the government in all the areas, including North Waziristan,” said Lt-Gen Rabbani, who commands 150,000 troops in the northwest along the Afghan border.

The army unleashed its helicopter gunships again Monday, attacking a weapons market in Miranshah where the militants who attacked the security checkpoint were believed to be hiding, said intelligence officials. The attack killed some 30 militants and destroyed dozens of shops that sold assault rifles, ammunition and rocket propelled grenades, the officials said.Since the fighting started Sunday, 20 troops have been injured, said the officials.

The attack on the weapons market occurred after the army had declared a curfew, so there did not appear to be any civilian casualties within the bazaar, said Haji Zafran, one of the shop owners. But a dozen people were wounded when a mosque near the market was hit, he said. The market burned for hours after the attack, and the area reverberated with loud bangs as the flames set off the ammunition and grenades in the shops, said Zafran.

The owner of the market, Haji Noor Deen, protested the army’s attack and claimed he and the other arms dealers suffered a loss of millions of dollars.“Our place was targeted for no reason, as nobody fired a shot from there at the army,” said Deen. “The dealers just sell arms to tribesmen.”The army lifted the curfew so that tribal elders and militants could hold a meeting to try to resolve the conflict, said intelligence officials.

The Jirga included members of the Haqqani network, an Afghan group, and also Hafiz Gul Bahadur, a powerful militant commander believed to be close to Pakistan, they said.The fighting in Miranshah follows the murder last week of a senior cleric, Maulana Naseeb Khan, who taught at a madrassa near Peshawar where several Taliban leaders studied. The cleric, who came from North Waziristan, was kidnapped near Peshawar and found dead on Thursday. After his funeral, the Taliban distributed a pamphlet blaming the army and vowing to avenge his killing.

PESHAWAR: A Pakistan-based legal charity has sought court injunctions for the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) to shoot down American drones flying into the Pakistani airspace in a lawsuit.

According to the PHC petition, over 3,000 people have been killed in over 320 drone strikes in FATA.

Foundation for Fundamental Rights has filed two petitions before the Peshawar High Court on behalf of victims of the drone strike carried out on March 17 last year.

The petitions cite the federation of Pakistan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defence among others as its respondents. One of the petitioners is Noor Khan, the surviving son of Malik Daud Khan, who was the head of a North Waziristan Jirga and was killed along with 50 other tribal elders and notables by CIA operated drones last year.

On March 17, 2011, a US drone fired missiles, brutally killing 50 people, including Khan, five members of the Khasadar force, and a small child.

FFR works along with British legal charity Reprieve which had filed a similar petition in London earlier against involvement of the British government in drone strikes in Pakistan.

According to the PHC petition, over 3,000 people have been killed in over 320 drone strikes in FATA.

The petitioners are seeking court orders asking the federal government to take up the issue before the United Nations Security Council, International Court of Justice and UNHRC.

They have also stated that the federal government should order the Pakistan Air Force to shoot down drones flying inside Pakistani territory in order to protect its citizens and initiate criminal proceedings against those involved on Pakistani or American side.

COAS was briefed about the ongoing operations against the terrorists as well as various projects aimed at rebuilding infrastructure, and help bring affected areas back to normalcy through education, and economic development. COAS expressed satisfaction over the progress of operations and stressed upon the need to ensure that collateral damage and civilian casualties are kept to a minimum.

Earlier, COAS laid a wreath on the Shuhada monument at Peshawar Cantt and also visited the injured soldiers under treatment at CMH Peshawar. He praised the courage and valour of the troops as well as sacrifices of civilians caught in the midst of active operations.

On arrival, COAS was received by Lieutenant General Khalid Rabbani, Commander Peshawar Corps.